Identity Crisis
by Kaiba-Kun
Summary: Superman is put in a deadly situation, leaving Metropolis unguarded from the maniacs within. Meanwhile, Lex Luthor comes to a fascinating discovery about Gotham’s Dark Knight at the same time as an old enemy returning from the “dead”.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey everyone! Today "The Dark Night" hits theatres, so I figured it would be a cool day to post this new story!**

**I own nothing of the Batman/Superman Adventures…they belong to Bruce Timm and Warner Brothers.**

**Hello everyone! This is my first attempt at a Batman/Superman fanfic. Enjoy!**

**Summary: Superman is put in a deadly situation, leaving Metropolis unguarded from the maniacs within. Meanwhile, Luthor comes to a fascinating discovery about Gotham's Dark Knight at the same time as an old enemy returning from the "dead".**

Chapter 1

A lightning bolt zipped across the Gotham skyline as a black car comes up the drive to Wayne Manor. Upon entering the front hall, immediate footsteps were heard as Tim Drake runs down the steps to meet his partner.

"Bruce, Alfred, you're back!" Tim smiled as he approached.

"It's good to see you, Master Timothy."

"How was Metropolis?"

"...It had its moments…" Bruce responded, sitting down in a chair. "Aside from almost falling to my death or almost being annihilated by a robot that I helped design, it went rather well. It turns out that Lex Luthor had teamed up with the Joker to destroy Superman."

"Wow." Tim responded. "But I thought Lex Luthor is your business partner! What's he got with the Joker?"

"It must've been something with the Kryptonite Joker stole. Luthor must have a grudge against the 'Man of Steel'. As a result, our partnership with LexCorp has been terminated."

"Does this mean no more business trips out of town?" Tim asked, a bit of a letdown in his voice.

"Do you disapprove?" Bruce asked, looking at his ward.

"I don't know…I kind of liked having the whole house to myself for the last week." Tim laughed.

Bruce gave a small smirk. "Don't get your hopes up, kiddo." He stood and moved to the window. Looking towards the city, Bruce closed his eyes and lowered his head. Tim just stared at him.

"You ok?"

"Fine…just fine."

* * *

The sun was shining brightly over the city of metropolis as a broken hearted Lois Lane walked into the Daily Planet building. Walking to her desk, she passed Jimmy Olsen and Clark Kent.

"Morning, Miss Lane," Jimmy smiled.  
"Hey, Jimmy." Lois said quietly. Clark watched her walk away.  
"Lois, is something wrong?"

"Clark, I'm not transferring to Gotham." She replied as she sat down at her desk.

"What happened?" Clark asked, even though he knew what happened. "Did he do something to you?"

"No, no, it's not like that. It's just…something didn't work out." Lois said. She looked up at Clark and gave a meek smile. "It looks like you'll have to put up with me some more, Smallville. No stardom for you yet."

"'Fraid so."

"OLSEN!!" boomed a voice from an upper floor.

"Oh no…I'm in trouble. Be back in a few." Jimmy said as he ran off.

When Lois was sure Jimmy was out of earshot, she leaned closer to Clark. "I loved him, Clark…I'm not even sure if I'll see him again."

"Well…," Clark began. He thought back to the previous week of his and the Dark Knight's 'partnership'. _He's Bruce Wayne AND Batman…he's not going to have enough time to come back…unless he has business here; but-_

"Hey Kent, you ok?" Lois asked, snapping Clark out of his thought.

"Huh? Oh, yeah…listen, Lois. About Bruce Wayne-

"Clark, please," Lois sighed and looked out the window. "You're not making me feel better…unless you have some rare magic powers to suddenly make his jet turn around and have Bruce Wayne come right through those doors. I doubt even Superman could do that."

* * *

MONTHS LATER

* * *

Five men walked into the First National Bank in downtown Metropolis and huddled into one of the corners in the back. All five men wore long coats. Only one of them wore gloves, a bandana his neck and large dark sunglasses. In the center of their huddle, the one man took out a semi-large spherical object and placed it in the palm of his hand. Nodding to the other men, he walked 

to the center of the room and stood still. The other four men each went to a different teller booth. As the lines moved quickly, one of the men reached the teller.

"Hello, how can I help you?" The girl asked.

The man opened his coat to reveal a gun. "Givin' me the all the money's a good start." At the sight of his weapon, the girl let out a loud gasp. Some nearby tellers and citizens started screaming. The other three men then brandished their own weapons. The bank manager ran towards a red button on the wall. Before he could press it, the man with the sphere ran forward and jumped over the counter.

"I wouldn't press that if I were you. This is a deadly grenade. If I hear the alarm go off, I'll release this, killing everyone." The disguised man threatened. "Now, take them to the vault before I activate it out of impatience."

The frightened manager opened the vault as the armed men grabbed as much money as they could. Before they could finish, the man with the grenade stopped them.

"That's enough. I'm sure by now someone's seen through the front windows and they've alerted the authorities. The last thing I want is Superman making a fool of me for the FOURTH time." He walked through the vault towards the back wall. Taking a step forwards, he rounded his hand into a fist and threw a powerful punch at the wall. The intensity of the blow crumbled the structure and created a hole. "C'mon. The van's back here." As he and his men drove off, the manager slammed the alarm switch.

* * *

Clark Kent sat at his desk typing furiously on his computer when he heard an explosion and gunfire using his improved hearing. Looking out the window, he saw smoke rising from downtown. _Not again….Perry isn't going to like this_. Clark ran out of the room and yanked off his glasses, preparing for another crime fighting session in the streets of Metropolis

The van raced down countless back alleys and main roads eluding the police the more they fled.

"Hey boss, was it really necessary to throw the grenade into the vault? We already got our loot."

"True," said the masked man. "But I did demand if they alerted the authorities, I would destroy them; and I am a man of my word."

"But boss…" said another henchman.

"Shut up and drive." The 'boss' demanded. Barely moments later, the occupants of the van all flew forward as something from behind grabbed the end of the van.

"What was that?" the driver asked.

"I don't know," said another.

The leader growled. "I do. Prepare yourself, men. A showdown is about to start."

* * *

ARKHAM ASYLUM

_It's been months…too many months. You're usually back in business by now. Puddin', where are you?! I know you're alive- I can feel it. As soon as I get outa here, I'm comin' to get you! _Harley 

looked up from her cot at the glass door in front of her. _Got to get out somehow_. She thought of the laundry chute, but remembered the horror of being trapped in an opperating washing machine. _Well…I can always just run for it…_Harley Quinn then saw a female guard at her door holding a tray of food. _This is my chance_. As the guard turned to leave, Harley smacked her with a stool. Then, without looking out for guards, she ran down a flight of stairs and jumped out of a window into a bush.

* * *

The driver looked in his rear view mirror of the van. "Boss! It's that Superman guy!"

"I know. You don't listen very well, do you?" The leader said. "Here's the plan. The four of you take the loot and regroup at our…headquarters. I'll meet up shortly."

"But…what about Superman?" asked another.

"I'll deal with our friend, Superman. You deliver that money. Now go, before I leave you to the 'Man of Steel's' fists!" The leader stepped out of the van towards Superman

"No need for violent actions, Superman. I give up." The leader said. He held up his hands.

"Good idea," said the Man of Steel as he stepped towards the robber. With his back turned from the van, the four accomplices ran down a nearby alley. When Superman reached the masked man, he received a hard in punch in the face, sending the man of steel into a nearby wall. Superman stalled a little before standing up. "Who are you?"

"Come now, Superman. After all this time, you don't even recognize an old foe when you get punched by one. This is what… our fourth or fifth battle?" The man threw off his concealing clothing to reveal…

"Metallo," Superman growled.

"I'm pleased that your memory has returned." Metallo smiled, revealing half of his metallic face. "Now, let's get down to business." The 'robot's' eyes turned green and bright beams hit Superman, knocking him out of the sky. "You always seem to fall for that one, Superman." Metallo laughed. He watched as his opponent struggled to stand up. "Come now. Get up, or this little battle is gonna get boring real quickly."

The man of steel looked around and hobbled to a nearby road sign. Grabbing it out of the ground, he swung it at Metallo. The sign broke upon impact.

"That was rather pathetic. Maybe I should just end your misery now. It'll save you a lot of trouble." Metallo opened his chest cavity, revealing a large chunk of Kryptonite and walked towards Superman.

In a desperate attempt to keep his distance, Superman looked up to see a ladder behind him leading to an apartment balcony. He started climbing the ladder as Metallo reached him.

"Get down from there. I'm not finished with you, yet." Metallo grabbed the base of the ladder and yanked downward, causing the ladder to crumble to the ground, along with Superman. When Superman fell at Metallo's feet, the criminal set a huge Kryptonite beam at Superman, weakening the hero more and more as each second passed. Superman tried fighting his foe off. "See this, Superman? This is what you deserve for sending me into prison- for turning me into a senseless fool- and for trapping me in magma. You've met your match." Metallo sent eye beams of radiation onto Superman, crippling him even more. Superman put up his arms as if he was holding something to shield himself, but to no avail. His strength gave out and he collapsed onto the ground.

Suddenly, he looked up, but kept his beam on Superman. A crowd of civilians, reporters, and policemen had gathered to watch in horror as their hero lay motionless on the ground. Metallo smirked and lifted Superman's body over his head. Angela Chen and her TV crew started setting up their cameras for a special news bulletin.

"See this, everyone! Here is the man of steel: defeated at last!" Metallo shouted as he threw Superman into the crowd and ran off. A few policemen tried to get him to wake, but to no avail.

"What happened?" asked a woman.

"Mommy is he dead?" asked a child.

"Shouldn't he be waking up since that beam isn't on him anymore?" a policeman asked a fellow officer.

* * *

The small ocean waves at Hobbs bay traveled back and forth on the cold December afternoon in Metropolis. One by one, the ocean waves strike the cold hard coastline of the city. However, when one wave came in, along came a large sized raft made of a scorched piece of metal. The man on the raft looked extremely ragged and thin, as if he hadn't eaten much at all in months. His skin was as white as a piece of paper, and his green hair had visible traces of sand and rock mixed in. As soon as the metal hit the coast, the thin man dragged himself onto shore. His torn purple blood-stained suit became covered with sand as he looked upward to the night sky. He closed his eyes and let out a deep, bone chilling cackle.

"Metropolis, eh? Well, it seems my aim was off, but oh well. This town will have to do. Look out; Supie- Uncle Joker is back in town. Aaaaaaaaahahahahaha!"

**Please review! **


	2. Chapter 2

**I own nothing of Batman/Superman the Animated Series. They belong to Warner Bros.**

* * *

Chapter 2

Lois Lane left the break room sipping a cup of coffee. As she walked to her desk, she was stopped by a very angry Perry White. His hands were into fists and his face was redder than a tomato.

"Lois, WHERE is Clark Kent??"

"I don't know, Chief. Last time I saw him was when he left for his lunch break. He was with Jimmy, I think."

"Thanks…OLSEN!!" Mr. White stormed off in search of his next prey. Turning the corner down a hallway, he ran right into Jimmy, who was changing the film in his camera.

"Olsen! What are you doing?"

"Putting in more film. I was about to head out to the streets."

"Not anymore, you're not. You're going to find Kent." Perry White demanded.

"But chief- Angela Chen is on the site of a major story! It's about Superman!"

"I don't care. I want to know where Kent is. Everything these days is about Superman!"

"But it's all over the TVs! I mean-"

"Chief!" said a voice. White turned to see Lois Lane running up clutching her purse. "Chief, can I take Jimmy out to the plaza? There's a story building up."

"Let me guess…it's about Superman."

"This is serious!"

"Fine. Take Olsen with you. And while you're out there, FIND CLARK KENT!!...AND STOP CALLING ME CHIEF, TOO!"

Lois and Jimmy took the elevator to the first floor, and then ran into Lois's car.

"So, what's the news about Superman?"

"He was in another fight with Metallo."

"Corbin?" Lois grimaced as she drove out of the parking lot. "Doesn't he ever take a hint?"

"Apparently not; and Superman is in trouble." Jimmy said. "From what I saw on TV, Metallo rendered him defenseless."

"WHAT?? Where were they?"

Lois's car zoomed down the Metropolis highways, following Jimmy's directions. After rounding another corner, her car came to an abrupt halt in order to avoid hitting the crowd of people at the scene. Lois got out of the car and looked around. Surrounding buildings had cracks or holes in their outer walls; cars were dented, crushed, or on fire; and in the center of the crowd lay the Man of Steel lying on the pavement.

"Superman!" Lois jumped out of her car towards the center of the crowd as Angela Chen's camera cut filming.

"Lois! It's about time you showed up. I thought you would be here earlier."

"Nice to see you too, Angela. Any details you want to share about this?"

"From what I saw myself, Superman almost stopped four men from robbing a bank. One of the men surrendered, walked up to Superman, and then threw off his jacket. Metallo revealed that green rock and weakened Superman in a tough fight. Metallo threw Superman on the ground and ran off. We tried getting a pulse, but couldn't find one. We called an ambulance just before you got here."

"I've seen Superman against Metallo loads of times, but I've never seen the result like this." Lois shook her head in disbelief as an ambulance drove up. Lois turned to Jimmy.

"Jimmy, stay with Superman." Lois said. "I'm gonna get this story."

"Why me?" Jimmy asked.

"Why not? You _are_ Superman's pal, aren't you?" Angela Chen retorted.

* * *

Jimmy walked quickly through the halls of the Metropolis Medical Center. Looking from room to room, he finally found the location of Superman, who was surrounded by doctors and nurses.

"He's not responsive," said a nurse as she put an oxygen mask over his nose and mouth.

"Is he gonna be ok?" Jimmy asked.

"I don't know, kid." A doctor said as he ran into the room. "How long has he been out?"

"I don't know, maybe fifteen- twenty minutes tops."

"Get the defibrillator!" ordered the doctors. "We need to act quickly if we're going to save him." The doctor pressed the pads onto Superman's chest. Pressing one of the buttons, Superman jolted on the medical bed. His heart remained silent.

"AGAIN!!" Ordered the doctor. Superman jolted again. A few seconds later, the heart monitor began beeping.

"Thank goodness." The doctor sighed.

"He's alive?" Jimmy asked.

"Barely, kid." The doctor said. "His heart rate is extremely low and he's barely breathing. We're lucky he even came back at all. At the moment, he's in a serious coma. There's nothing we can do but supply him with oxygen."

"Will he ever come out?" Jimmy said.

The doctor patted him on the shoulder. "As long has he keeps breathing, his condition should remain as is and/or improve. My hope is he'll come out of it within a week or two. With him off the streets, there's no telling how many criminals will run loose."

* * *

Lois walked slowly back to her car when her phone rang. "Hello?"

"Lois? It's Jimmy."

"How is he?"

"The doctors revived him, but he's still in bad shape." Jimmy said.

"How bad is it?"

"Coma?"

"That's bad."

"He's on life support, so he should be ok. The doctor thinks in about two weeks, he should come out."

"Let's hope so." Lois said. "I got the details for my story, so I'm coming to pick you up. We still need to find Smallville."

* * *

2 DAYS LATER

* * *

Perry White paced his office nervously in front on Jimmy Olsen and Lois Lane.

"We looked everywhere, Chief." Jimmy said. "No one can find Clark Kent anywhere."

"It's been two days. He's not the type to not call if he was going to be out." Lois said sadly.

"Do you think he was abducted by some maniac? Metallo maybe? Perhaps he was a witness of the robbery and was abducted to keep things quiet. " Mr. White suggested.

"Smallville? He's the worst kind of person to kidnap! He doesn't have anything of value!" Lois said. "Besides, all he would need to do is tell some "Kansas living" story and his captors would fall asleep in five minutes flat."

"I'm not so sure, Lois." Jimmy said. "Clark left for lunch just before the robbery! It's possible Metallo grabbed him as a hostage."

"It works in theory, but it's not Corbin's style. He would only kidnap someone unless he knew it was his for his advantage…that creep."

* * *

WAYNE ENTERPRISES-GOTHAM CITY

Bruce Wayne rubbed the back of his neck as he walked towards his secretary's desk. She wasn't there, but there was a note on her clean desk.

_Mr. Wayne: _

_You've received several calls from a Mr. Lex Luthor. He mentioned something about a new partnership for some new project he's designing. He requests you call him back as soon as possible. _

_-Sarah_

_Oh, by the way…a young boy let himself into your office a while ago._

Picking up the note, he walked through the double doors of his office. When he looked towards his desk, he rolled his eyes. In his chair sat Tim Drake playing on his computer.

"Having fun?"

"Just passing the time; besides, its holiday break! You don't expect me to sit around at home, do you? There are even times when Alfred gets to be too much." Bruce remained silent as he picked up some papers off his desk and flipped through them. "Bruce, I'm worried about you."

"Why?"

"You haven't been yourself. You're always distracted, especially on missions. I mean, last night, we were against Riddler's goons, and the puny one knocked you unconscious! You! UNCONSCIOUS!" Tim exclaimed. "This isn't like you at all! What's bothering you? You can tell me."

"It's nothing."

"That's what you said last time." Tim pouted, "AND the time before that."

"Is that a problem?"

"Alfred and I are just concerned. That's all."

Bruce stared long and hard at Tim. Then his eyes moved toward the newspaper on his desk. Curiously, he picked up the paper and looked right at the top headline:

**METALLO MANHANDLES MAN OF STEEL**

By: Lois Lane  
Metropolis Daily Planet Staff

_Around noontime in the Metropolis Square, Superman, Metropolis's 'Man of Steel' was defeated by super criminal John Corbin, now known as "Metallo". _

_It all began in the Metropolis First Bank as four unidentified men walked in and demanded money. The fifth man, Corbin, kept control by holding a small grenade, said female teller Sandy Keller. Keller also called her manager, who sounded the bank alarm when he saw the fifth man punch a hole in the vault wall. _

_Superman caught up with the robbers soon after their departure from the bank. According to pedestrians, four of the men escaped down a nearby alley as the fifth man stepped towards Superman and surrendered. _

_According to news reporter Angela Chen, "Superman was about to lead the man to the police when the man threw off his coat and other concealing clothing to show his metal skin. " _

_Metallo clearly had the advantage in the fight, using his kryptonite heart to strike Superman with radiation beams from his chest cavity and eyes. When he could take the radiation no longer, Superman collapsed lifelessly on the pavement. _

_Superman was rushed to Metropolis Medical Center where Doctors and nurses restarted his heart. He currently remains on life support while he experiences a severe coma._

_If anyone has any information on the whereabouts of Metallo, immediately notify Daniel Turpin from the Special Crimes Unit and/or Inspector Henderson from Metropolis Police Department. He is considered armed and extremely dangerous._

Bruce Wayne looked up from the paper at Tim.

"What's wrong?"

"You remember Superman, right?"

"Yeah; he dressed up like you when you went missing. Why?"

"He's in a serious coma."

"No way." Tim said in shock. "_The_ Superman? IN A COMA?"

"Read it for yourself." Bruce said, tossing the paper onto his desk. Tim picked it up and skimmed the article. "It doesn't seem possible."

"Everyone has a weakness, and all that needs to happen is someone to exploit it, like Metallo."

"I'd hate to be in Metropolis right now." Tim said.

"You know what? I'm thinking of taking a trip."

"Now? When Christmas is in three weeks?"

"Why not?" Bruce shrugged. "Veronica keeps asking what I'm doing for the holidays, so now I have a good answer."

"Where are you going?"

"Metropolis, of course. I think I'll pay an old friend a visit."

"Is Batman going to make any appearances?"

"Maybe."

"Can I come too?"

"No."

"But Bruce, I wanna get out of Gotham for a few weeks." Tim said. "I never get to go anywhere."

"Commissioner Gordon may need you."

"Come on, that's what Batgirl and Nightwing are for." Tim said. "C'mon…PLEASE?"

"I'll think about it." Bruce said. "In the meantime, call Alfred and tell him to pack. I won't be back until after the holidays end."

"Then where am I supposed to stay?"

"I'll think of something."

"I've heard of that before." Tim grumbled as he left the office. Pulling a cell phone out of his pocket, he dialed the Wayne Manor number, hoping Alfred would pick it up.

"Wayne Manor."

"Alfred, its Tim."

"Oh, good to hear from you, Master Timothy." Alfred said.

"Bruce wants to tell you to pack. He's making another trip to Metropolis."

"For how long is this trip, sir?"

"Umm, he mentioned coming back after the holidays were over. I'd say a few weeks."

"I see. Are you coming along, sir?"

"Bruce won't let me." Tim said. He looked around to be sure Bruce couldn't hear him talking. "Do you know of a way for me to get there without him knowing??"

"I don't know of any, Master Timothy. If you were Mr. Grayson, I would suggest taking his batcycle, but you're far too young to operate a car."  
"Alfred, please! I really want to go."

"Perhaps you can convince Master Bruce to change his mind." Alfred replied. "I dare not go against his wishes. He seems to know what's best."

"But I don't want to be stuck in Gotham while he's on vacation somewhere! Please, Alfred…I'm begging here!"

"I'm sorry, Master Timothy. I will have no part in you smuggling yourself to Metropolis. But, since you want to go so badly, I suggest conversing with Dick Grayson. He fooled Master Bruce many times while he stayed here. Of course, you didn't hear that from me."

"Of course not. It's our little secret."

"What's your little secret?" Bruce asked, walking up to his ward.

"Bruce! Oh, umm….nothing. "Tim nervously replied, showing an innocent smile.

"I'm off to find Lucius and give him the news." Bruce said, walking towards the elevator. "By the way, I thought about it."

"I can go?" Tim asked. "Awesome!"

"No, you can't go." Bruce announced. "This is a somewhat personal trip, and I want to handle it alone."

"Fine." Tim pouted.

"I called Dick. He said he'd watch you for the few weeks."

"Fine." Tim grumbled. When Bruce left the room, Tim opened dialed on his phone again.

"Dick? It's Tim. I need your help."

* * *

LEXCORP BUILDING-METROPOLIS

An extremely tired Lex Luthor sat at his desk, flipping through Newspapers, legal papers, and construction bills. Ever since The Joker struck a deal with him to kill Superman months ago, the press has been at his throat more and more instead of him being "Mr. Clean", as the psycho clown had promised. After throwing all of the papers onto the floor in frustration, he pressed a comm. button on his desk.  
"Mercy!"

"Yes, Lex?"

"Do you have the robot camera yet??"

"Technicians are still fixing it now. It should be ready…" Mercy's voice faded into static.

"Mercy? Mercy!!" Suddenly, the doors to his office were flung open. A ragged figure slowly walked into the room, approaching Luthor's desk.

"Hello Lexie. It's been a LONG time, hasn't it? Aaaaaaaaahahahahaha!"

* * *

**Ok, I know my typing of a laugh can never compare to the real awesomeness of Mark Hamill's awesome Joker laugh, but that's what imaginations are for! PLEASE REVIEW!!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Enjoy the pure villain chapter!**

Chapter 3

"Joker??" Lex Luthor gasped. The appearance of his "partner" was definitely unexpected, especially since his body was supposedly lost at sea.

"Lexie, I'm hurt. It's only been four or five months. You couldn't have forgotten me that quickly. And to think we were such good friends!"

"We're not friends, you freak." Lex growled. "How'd you survive that blast, anyway?"

"Well, just before my exploding marbles exploded, the ship shifted, causing a hole in the nearby wall. I jumped out, barely enough time to employ my parachute before the whole thing went KABLUEY! The tide carried me to a small island where I've survived on yucky sea water, fish, and basically anything that moved. Tired of living like a sea bum, I felt it was time to go back to Gotham. Even Arkham seemed like a paradise." Joker sighed. "I grabbed a large piece of the ship's hull and rafted myself to Gotham….but the waves sent me back here. Now here I am!" Joker smiled at Luthor, then looked at his stomach as he heard a noise. Looking back at Luthor, he put on a begging expression. "Got any food?"

"Me help you?? You must've left your brain and memory on that rock! I'd rather see you die." Luthor laughed.

"And here I thought _**I**_ was the clown around here." Joker giggled. He jumped onto Luthor's desk. "Listen, Luthor. I-"The clown prince of crime was interrupted as Mercy Graves walked into the office. As soon as she saw the Joker, she instantly scanned the room for his accomplice. "Hello there! Long time no see, ha-ha." Joker smiled.

"Can it, clown." Mercy snapped, walking up to her boss. "Lex, I have the robot camera film. The technicians altered it to cover the main camera and the two side cameras. "

"Finally." Lex smiled greedily. He snatched the disc from Mercy and put it in his computer.

"What's so special about some old film? Home movies? I can get popcorn…" Joker joked.

"Should we tell him?" Mercy asked her boss.

"I don't see why not. After all, it sort of concerns him."

"OOoo, I like secrets!" Joker smiled. "What's on that film, Lexie?"

"Do you remember when you took one of my robots and tried to kill Batman?"

"Yes."

"Well, according to my agents that work at the Daily Planet, the robot followed Batman into the press room."

"Yeah, so? We both know ol' Supie smushed the robot and saved the masked rodent."

"But not before the robot caught some interesting evidence."

"Stop talking in riddles! Who do you think you are, Edward Nygma?" Joker said. "Just say it!"

"Let's play the film. If my hunch is correct, you should be very surprised. Lex said. He pressed a button on his desk and a projection screen came down from the ceiling. Mercy Graves turned off the lights as the video began.

"Hey! That's me!" Joker smiled. "I always wanted to be a movie star. It's too bad my Poo isn't here to see this… poor Harley, rotting away in Arkham."

"Joker, shut up."

_A target sighted sign blinked on the screen as the robot got sight of Batman. Batman launched small missiles towards the robot. The view went fuzzy until the smoke cleared. _Joker, Mercy, and Lex watched as the robot followed the Dark Knight on top of busses, running countless cars off the road.

"That thing drives worse than Harley." Joker cringed. "No wonder Bats flew the coop. he he."

_The video shifted to the wall of the Daily Planet as the robot climbed the side in pursuit of its target. When the interior of the newspaper building came into view, Batman was seen carrying Lois Lane to safety. The image then went white as the robot started breaking down the stairwell door. _

"Does this thing have sound?" Joker asked. "Silent movies are the pits."

"It did, but his missiles hit the sound recorder." Mercy said.

_Batman came into view as the image changed to the press room of the Daily Planet. Suddenly, a batarang spun in and out of view. A very blurry batman walked towards the camera in hopes of the robot being defeated. The image rose as Batman stepped backwards. After the robot advanced on Batman, his cape got caught in the spinning machinery. The image then whirled to Lois Lane throwing a fire extinguisher at the camera. The image then split into halves: Lois's non blurry image on the left and Batman on the right. After a few more moments of struggling, Batman's cowl was yanked off. _Lex Luthor paused the video.

"H-his mask! It's off!" Mercy stammered.

"At last! My greatest enemy has his identity known…sort of! This is brilliant! Sheer brilliance!"

"So, Joker…who is it?"

"How should I know? It's too blurry. Keep playing it. Maybe it gets clearer."

_Lois recoiled after throwing the extinguisher. Her eyes went wide, as she mouthed something. The unmasked batman then took one of the robot legs and ran it into the machine. The Batman camera fizzled out, showing only Lois's image. She crossed her arms and said something to Batman as he put his cowl back over his head. The other half of the image activated again, only for two red-booted feet to come crashing down on top, destroying the rest of the images. _

"So…Lois Lane knows who Batman is…and apparently his identity surprises her….she knows him from somewhere…hehe." Joker grinned deviously. "This could be fun." Joker hopped off Luthor's desk and paced the room. "Wanna make another deal?"

"Are you insane?" Lex retorted. "Why should I trust you again?? You tried to kill me!"

"C'mon! I was having revengeish issues!" Joker pleaded. "Please??"

"What makes you think I will? You promised last time that the press would stay off my back; instead, they've been hounding me ever since you blew up my lab. And because of my deal with you, I lost my partnership with Bruce Wayne, which I am STILL trying to get back."

"Please, Lex." Joker begged. "This is a rare opportunity…I'll help you defeat Superman…somehow."

"No need. A friend of mine has taken care of the Man of Steel. He's in a serious coma at Metropolis Medical Center."

"Oh." Joker frowned.

"Actually….there may be a way for us to "partnership" after all." Luthor said, thinking.

"Lex, you can't be serious." Mercy said.

"Relax, Mercy."

"Oh Lexie, I knew our little partnership would last. You can't get rid of me that easily!" Joker cheered.

"First things first." Mercy said, turning up her nose at the villain. "You need some new clothes."

Joker looked down at himself. His purple jacket was practically in pieces, the cuffs of his pants were in deep shreds, his bowtie was falling off, his cummerbund was missing and his green shirt was covered with dirt and sand. "What's wrong with these??"

* * *

"So Lexie…" Joker said as he, Mercy Graves and Joker walked down the halls of LexCorp. Joker now wore a spare security uniform and hat (minus the gun of course) to disguise himself. "What's this plan of yours?"

"Joker, you asked for another partnership, right?"

"Yes."

"Well, in order to eliminate the big mess you created for me, I'm going to hopefully partner you up with someone more you're type."

"A Mime?" Joker laughed.

"Come. I'll show you." Lex said. He led Joker into one of the basement levels. Opening one if the doors, he led the Clown Prince of Crime into a science lab where there was a robot on the table being worked on. The robot's silver shell was being completely covered with human colored fibers. The chest cavity of the robot lay open with a large chunk of kryptonite on a side work table.

"Lexie, you've been a busy boy!" Joker said. "First robots that look like bugs, now robots that look like people!"

"I didn't exactly build him." Lex Luthor explained. "He used to be one of my most loyal friends. When he got deathly ill, I placed his brain into this metallic body. Right now, we're repairing his damaged skin and giving him some…extra features."

"Right…..so you're telling me that thing has a human brain?" Joker asked. He stared at the body on the table. "Lexie, you never cease to amaze me."

"Quit the friendly talk, clown. I still don't trust you. That's why I'm allowing you to work with him."

One of the scientists approached Luthor. "He's all finished, sir."

"Good." Luthor said. He walked over to the table as the 'patient' opened his eyes.

"Welcome back, John."

"Luthor…was the operation a success?"

"Yes, indeed. You got your wish, John, and I kept my promise. You defeated Superman and now you're getting what you wanted most since the first operation. "

"Yes, and it _feels_ good. I know I've betrayed you, Luthor, but now I am beginning to see your intentions are for my favor." Corbin said.

"John, I'd like you to meet someone you'll be working with." Luthor said. He walked John Corbin to where Joker and Mercy were standing.

"John, meet The Joker-Gotham's deadliest criminal. Joker, meet Metallo: the man who defeated Superman."

* * *

Near the cold shores of Hobbs Bay, A bus pulled over to one of the select bus stops. The only passenger getting off was a woman with blonde hair pulled back into a bun. Her blue eyes were behind circular rimmed glasses. She wore a long open coat over her psychoanalyst uniform. She proceeded down the boardwalk and walked right up to the water. She watched the icy waters wave back and forth, and pulled her coat tight around her, covering the "Arkham Asylum" name tag. She started breathing heavily and dropped to the ground in tears. She picked up a fist full of cold sand and let it slowly seep through her fingers.

"Mista J…where are you?? I know you're out there…I can feel it. You always come back…you just can't be..." Harley sobbed. Suddenly, something caught her eye. There was a deep imprint in the sand. She looked closer. The imprint was a shoe print leading away from the ocean. Harley looked around the bay and saw a large piece of metal washed up on shore. She turned and looked down at the ground, trying to find more foot prints. _Can this be?? Is he really..._ She followed the set of prints right towards the boardwalk, and then stopped. There was no way of telling where the figure had gone at this point. She looked up and down the boardwalk. The only person around was a fat fisherman. _Maybe he knows something._ The doctor ran to him.

"Excuse me, sir."

"Good afternoon, Miss. Name's Bibbo. What can I do for ya?" asked Bibbo.

"Have you seen anyone on the beach lately?"

"Ehh? In dis weather, who's gonna be out sun tanning?"

"NO no, I mean…um…someone coming from the water…or…it's hard to explain."

"Take your time." Bibbo said.

"OK…um I was on a…plane with a man when something went….wrong." Harley began. _Man, lying about Puddin' is harder than it sounds._ "I was able to get my parachute out but my…boyfriend didn't make it out with me. I came by to…say my goodbyes when I saw that metal on the shore…I was just wondering if you saw him…incase he made it after all."

"What'd he look like?" The Bibbo asked.

"He wore a suit…had really…._umm_ pale skin, dark black hair dyed with…green highlights…black shoes… have you seen him at all?" Harley asked, looking down at the ground.

"ehh…lemme think for a sec."Bibbo said, scratching his head under his hat. "There was some weird raggy dude on da beach earlier this week."

Harley looked up instantly with hope in her eyes. "What did he look like? Do you remember?"

"Lemme see…he had some torn purple jacket and pants, some green-"

"That's him!"

"It is? 'Cuz he fits the description of that Joker fellow, but it's not him 'Cuz he died at sea months ago."

"Oh." Harley said, faking a sad tone. "Did you see which way he went?"

"No, but when he walked past me, he was mutterin' something that sounded like "Luthor" as in rich business guy." Bibbo said.

"Thanks …uh...Bibbo. " Harley said as she ran back to the bus stop. Unfortunately, when she got there, the parked buss had just pulled away from the curb. She looked up at the Metropolis skyline, looking for the tall LexCorp building. Then she started running down the sidewalk.

"Don't worry, Puddin'! I'm coming!!"

* * *

Metallo looked back and forth between Joker and Lex Luthor. He had just been briefed about what has happened in Luthor's office.

"Let me get this straight, Joker." Metallo said. "You know who this…Batman is?"

"Yes and no." Luthor said. "The image was too blurry to get a definite identification."

"So how do I fall into this?"

"Well…we know-"Joker was cut off by a beep coming from Luthor's pocket. Reaching in, he pulled out a small phone.

"Mercy, I told you I don't want to be disturbed." Luthor hissed.

"But Lex, some female doctor just stormed into your office. She demands to speak to you. Something about her doesn't seem right, though. Should I call security? "

"No." Luthor said. "We'll be right up." He closed his phone. "Joker, John? I need to make a trip up to my office. Care to join me?"

"Sure. I'm tired of staring at white laboratory walls." Metallo shrugged.

When the group stepped off the elevator, they heard screams all the way down the hall from Luthor's office.

"Sounds like your lady's having issues." Joker laughed. Luthor shot the clown prince a cold look as he opened the door. The room became silent when Luthor stepped inside. Mercy Graves was wrestling the woman in question on the ground.

"Mercy." Luthor said, rolling his eyes. "What are you doing?"

"She barged in here, and when I demanded she leave, she lunged at me."

"Mercy, Mercy…" Luthor shook his head in disbelief. Here in front of him was his right hand girl getting "creamed" by some doctor.

"Oh no, Lexie…looks like your office is gonna need some tiding up a bit." Joker chuckled as he walked into the room. When he saw the girl on the floor, he nearly fell over. "CAN IT BE??"

_That voice…_The woman on the floor looked up to see an odd looking security guard looking down at her wide eyed. "P-p-Puddin'?"

"P-Poo??"

"She's that clown girl??" Mercy asked, shocked. _I thought she sounded familiar…_

The two 'clowns' looked at each other wide eyed.

"PUDDIN!!" Harley cried as she jolted off the floor right into Joker's arms. Tears started to stream from her eyes. "I missed you so much."

"Oh Harl'…and I you!" Joker smiled. "All I could think about while marooned on some island was how my poor Harley is rotting away in the depths of Arkham…with no one to keep her company!"

"Oh Mista J, nothing' will separate us ever again!" Harley cried as they embraced.

"Oh give me a barf bag, I'm gonna hurl." Mercy cringed. Luthor just stared at the two with a cock-eyed expression.

"This reminds me, Poo." Joker said as he put her down. "My pal Lexie and I saw something about ol' Bats that I've personally never seen before."

"What??"  
"I saw the bat without his mask!"

"What? How? When??" Harley asked.

"Lexie showed me some videos of the giant robot VS ol Batsy and it turns out that during the fight, Batman's cowl comes right off!"

"Wow!" Harley said, astonished. "So who is Batman?"

"That's the problem. See, one of Batman's stupid boomerangs exploded on the focus, so the picture is extremely blurry." Joker said.

"That's where we fit in Steel Man!"

"It's Metallo." Corbin corrected.

"Whatever." Joker shrugged.

"Can I assume you have a plan, Puddin?"

"Not quite yet, Poo, but we have an eye witness to the whole event…and she could very well be the key to Batman's ultimate destruction!

* * *

**PLEASE REVIEW! More of Metallo to come as the story progresses!!**


	4. Chapter 4

Batman/Superman Adventures belongs to Bruce Timm and Warner Bros.

Chapter 4

Snow fell calmly over the dark, quiet streets and buildings of Metropolis. In one of the many apartment buildings slept Lois Lane. Suddenly, a shadow hovered over her sleeping form, and then moved downstairs. Moments later, she started to feel a draft, and then she woke up to a noise downstairs in her apartment. Pulling aside her blankets, she got out of bed and slowly walked downstairs. She rubbed her arms as she began to move through her living room and kitchen. _Why's it so cold down here?_ She noticed her balcony door was wide open. As she went to close them, she noticed messy footprints on her white carpet floor. After latching the door, she followed the footprints to something taped onto her apartment door. _Oh great._ Lois sighed as she picked up the note and silently read:

_**Lovely Lois: **_

_**I've been thinking about you these last few months…and I believe you owe me something…**_

_**Mark my words, Lois: very…very soon, I intend on collecting it. It doesn't matter where you are or who you're with. I WILL find you. **_

Lois looked up and looked nervously around her apartment in case the mysterious person suddenly emerged from the shadows. She then read the note again, as if it would give a clue to who this person was. Lois walked back toward her balcony and looked out to the Metropolis skyline to see if this mysterious person was still around. After gazing at darkness for a few moments, she picked up her phone and dialed Clark Kent's number.

"Hey, this is Clark Kent. I'm unable to pick up now, so leave me a message and I'll get back as soon as I can."

_BEEP_

Lois turned off the phone and went back upstairs to her bedroom. Her clock said 3:52 am. Figuring it was pointless to go back to sleep, she got dressed for work, wearing her red and black jacket with her black skirt. Going back downstairs, she fixed herself some coffee and turned on her TV, anxiously waiting for morning to come.

Hours later, as the sun rose over the Metropolis horizon, a very tired Lois changed her TV channel to Angela Chen's morning news.

"Metropolis reaches some of its darkest hours as crime in the city goes up fifteen percent. Police forces are spread all over the city, trying to regain control of mob bosses and local criminals. Many fear it is only a matter of time now before criminals gain total control. With Superman's conditioning remaining as is, the question on everyone's mind is: Will the crime ever stop? Now, we'll switch to Jeffrey with the traffic."

"Due to icy conditions, an accident has occurred on South End Highway stretching all the way to Humphrey Plaza. State police officers have closed the road down until the mess is cleared-"

Lois turned off the TV. "Oh that's just great." she said to herself. "Superman's out cold so everyone breaks into people's apartments and goes partying in the streets…lovely. I guess I'm walking to work." She threw on her long coat and proceeded on foot towards the daily planet building.

Lois turned down a street littered with parked cars, small restaurants and private businesses. Near one of the alleys was a small florist shop. Before Lois reached the shop, a private black car pulled up in front and out stepped Bruce Wayne in a long coat and sunglasses as a minor disguise and quickly entered the store.

As he looked around, he double take at the window as Lois Lane passed the store.

As the female reporter walked past the floral shop, two burly men snuck out of an alleyway and proceeded towards her. Lois tried to pass them as she walked past, but they kept blocking the sidewalk.

"Excuse me." Lois said, as she tried to squeeze between the men.

"What's your rush, doll?" one of the men asked. He reached up to grab her arm but Lois turned around and ran back the other way. "GET HER!"

"Lois looked behind her while she ran. When she couldn't see her pursuers anymore, she snuck into one of the alleyways on the street to rest.

_First the note, then this?! What's next??_

"THERE SHE IS!"

_Crap_.

Lois backed away from her attackers until she hit a brick wall. She put up her arms to protect herself and turned her face away as one of the men grabbed her and started to drag her out of the alley.

"Come on, Lane. Our boss wants a few words with you."

"Yeah well, you can tell your boss to take a rain check; now LET ME GO!"

"Not likely. Maybe if Superman was flying' around we would…but he's out cold so we don't have to worry about any interruptions."

"I dare say, gentlemen; using force like that is not the best way to handle a lady," said a voice in the opening of the alley. Lois looked to see an older man wearing a chauffer's uniform standing before her.

"Scram, old geezer," said one of the captors.

"This 'aint no place for some golden oldie like you," said the other.

"Perhaps I will, if you let the lady go."

"Sorry, Pops. She's coming' with us."

The elder man walked up to the thugs as they pulled out guns. Lois closed her eyes and cringed, expecting the worst to happen. She heard several punches and then bodies fall to the ground as well as the thug's hand falling from her arm. She opened her eyes to see both men on the ground with the elder man rubbing his hands together in victory.

"Are you alright, Miss Lane?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine." Lois smiled. "Thank you."

"Oh you're quite welcome." The man said. "I was in a parked car waiting for my master when I saw you bump into these goons." He said.

"I was on my way to the Daily Planet, and since Humphrey Plaza is closed, I had to walk."

"I would be happy to give you a ride to the Planet building, Miss Lane. I heard on the news that the accident was cleared."

"What about your master?"

"He'll understand." The man said. "Oh dear, I'm afraid I haven't introduced myself:

"Well, thank you again." She smiled as she walked to the man's car. "Who is your master, anyway?"

"Oh, I would say, but he prefers to lay low for the time being."

"This may sound offensive, but you're not going to ehh…kidnap me are you?"

"None taken, and why would I do that?" he asked as he drove off.

"It's just that someone broke into my apartment last night and left a…intimidating message."

"I can assure you I have only honorable intentions."

* * *

"Lois!" Jimmy greeted as she stepped off the elevator. He gave Lois a small look of concern. "You ok?"

"Rough night…rough morning…is the chief in a good mood?" Lois asked.

"Not really, since you came in a half hour late." Jimmy said as they walked to her desk. "Well, you know that the Planet's annual holiday dinner is coming up."

"Yeah, I know." Lois said.

"Who are you gonna go with?"

"I'm thinking of not going this year. I've always gone with Clark, but he's not around…unless he randomly shows up in the next few days. He'd better watch his back when he returns, because he owes me big time."

* * *

A dark private car drove to an old house on the outskirts of Metropolis. When the car stopped, two men stepped out with large bruises on their faces. Walking inside, they walked to a sitting room containing a recuperating clown and his psycho girlfriend, and John Corbin, sitting near a lit fireplace.

"Well?" said Corbin. "Where is she?"

"We chased Lane to an alleyway and were about to get her into our car when some old geezer showed up," said one of the thugs.

"You're telling me that some of Luthor's best got rattled by some OLD MAN??" Corbin grimaced. "You are pathetic. Must I do everything myself?"

"It's not your fault, Johnny-boy, said the Joker as he leaned on his elbows. "After all, in the middle of the morning, who wouldn't help a woman in distress?" This isn't Gotham City, you know."

"It's the last time I listen to one of your ideas." Corbin said, glaring at his thug.

"We must wait for just the right moment." Joker said. "She's too high strung to make a move. We must take her by surprise."

"I say we keep her on surveillance." Corbin said. "This way we know what she's up to."

"Hmm, just a thought…" Joker began, "did you say some old man in a chauffeur uniform creamed you two?"

"Yeah…" The thug said. "I remember seein' him in a black car when we was trailin the lady."

"Curious…very curious…" Joker said. "Harley, how would you like to keep tabs on our little reporter friend?"

"Anythin' for you, Puddin."

* * *

That evening, Lois walked out of the doors of the daily planet building to see a familiar black car parked out front. As she walked down the steps, the driver stepped out of the car and opened the back seat door to her.

"Giving me a lift home as well?" Lois smiled as she greeted him.

"It only seems fitting." Alfred said, closing the car door after her. Alfred got back into his seat and continued. "I informed my master of this morning's events and he thought it would be a good idea to give you a ride back to your apartment in case your attackers return."

"Well, tell your master he's very thoughtful, especially for someone he doesn't even know."

Oh, he excels at that, Miss Lane."

Alfred dropped Lois off in the parking deck of her apartment building

Closing the door to her apartment, she threw herself onto her couch and sighed. Looking down at the floor, she still saw the ruminants of the mysterious footprints from the night before. Rolling her eyes, she was caught off guard by her phone ringing. She stared at the receiver in fear that it was her mysterious stalker, but decided to pick up the phone.

"H-hello?"

"Lois, its me."

"Bruce?!" Lois cried in disbelief.

"Expecting someone else?"

"No no, it's great hearing from you, Bruce," Lois smiled.

"I heard about this morning. Are you alright?"

"News reached Gotham that quickly?" she asked, surprised.

"I guess you can say that."

"I'm fine, though. A very thoughtful elder man helped me."

"Do you want me to come by your apartment tonight?"

"I'm fine, Bruce. Really, I am."

"Someone did try to kidnap you, you know. It might not be a bad idea to have some extra eyes around."

"Bruce, I appreciate the offer but I can take care of myself. Besides, it's not like Gotham City is right around the corner."

Suddenly, her doorbell rang and she gave out a loud gasp.

"Are you sure about being ok?" Bruce asked.

As Lois walked towards her door, she heard a click on the phone. Looking confused at the phone, she then opened the door to reveal…

"Bruce?" Lois looked at Bruce Wayne holding his cell phone and a box in his hands. "This is…defiantly unexpected."

"I hope I'm not interrupting something." He smiled, handing her the box.

"Actually, I'm glad to see you." Lois said. "I've been having…problems…" She moved aside to let her friend in when she poked her head down the hallway. She heard footsteps getting louder and louder until suddenly a young man boy ran right up to her. When Bruce saw the youth, the warm smile on his face quickly disappeared.

"Hey Bruce." The boy said.

"You know him?"

"He's my ward." Bruce said, rolling his eyes. "Tim, Lois. Lois, Tim Drake."

"Let me guess…you're Robin, right?" she guessed, placing the box on a side table.

"What?!" Tim asked, shocked. He looked up to Bruce expecting to see a similar response, but nothing.

"I've been keeping tabs on Gotham's Dynamic Duo." Lois said. "I never truly said good-bye to you, you know, Bruce. There were times when I was almost tempted to call, but I chose not to."

Tim looked from Lois to the angered eyes of Bruce and back to Lois again. "Ohhh, THAT'S why you wanted me to stay home…" Tim looked up at Bruce. "She's not a vegetable, is she?"

"Tim." Bruce hissed, shaking his head.

"A vegetable??" Lois asked, curiously.

"Long story." Tim smiled.

"So what's the problem?" Bruce asked.

"Last night, someone snuck into my apartment and left some message." Lois said, handing Bruce a piece of paper. After he read it, Tim snatched it out of his hands and read it. "Some old boyfriend or something?"

"To be honest, I thought Bruce wrote it. II mean, you go around cities at night…but after reading it again, you wouldn't threaten me to get my attention." Lois shrugged. "I have a bunch of enemies in this city, so it could be anyone."

"Don't worry, Miss Lane! We're on it!" Tim cheered. He looked up at Bruce. "You did bring your gear, didn't you?"

Meanwhile, in the building across from her apartment, a young female clown looked through binoculars into Lois's apartment. She then pulled out a walky talky.

"Poo to Puddin'."

"What's new, Harley?"

"Mista J, I think we got a problem!"

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED.**

**Sorry this update took so long. College is starting, so my updates might be a bit more spread out. Next installment coming SOON.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey everyone! PLEASE READ!! : **

**Here's the next installment! I am now in COLLEGE! Thrills, chills, and studying galore, right? This chapter was supposed to be uploaded early September… (You can see how well THAT went over…). College is tough (anyone who says it's the easiest piece of pie ever is LIEING!) therefore updates on ANYTHING will definitely slow down. Sorry if I just pissed everyone off a bit. I know I'm a horrible updater to begin with. I'm trying!! This is my New Year's Resolution: UPDATE FASTER!!! Hopefully I can keep it this time. Anyways, enjoy the chapter. Please review! I love your opinions!! **

Chapter 5

"Mista J, we got a problem."

"What kind of problem?" Joker asked.

"Well, she got a visitor." Harley said, nervously.

"Who?"

"Bruce Wayne."

"Brucie?" Joker asked, shocked. "What's he doing here?"

"Who's Bruce Wayne?" John Corbin asked.

"Brucie? Why… he's only the wealthiest playboy from home sweet Gotham. I threw him off a window once. It was fun." Joker giggled.

"What's he doing at Lois's apartment?"

"Don't know." Joker frowned, rubbing his chin in deep thought. "I do believe there used to be something between them months ago...I'm not really sure. Being marooned on an island takes a lot out of a clown."

"He being here could ruin our plans." Corbin said. "Want me to get rid of him?"

"GASP!" Joker laughed. "Naughty, naughty thoughts, Johnny. No, we're not going to kill Bruce Wayne…not yet. He actually gives us an advantage to our little game. "Joker smiled evilly and turned back to the talkie.

"Keep an eye on the ol' lovebirds, Harl. I want a report of anything that will help us out."

"Right away, Mista J!"

* * *

"I take it this isn't a social call then?" Lois asked.

"Actually, it is." Bruce "smiled". Lois turned around and looked hard at him.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously," Bruce responded. He walked over to her and took her hands in his. She looked at her hand and then fixed her gaze into Bruce's blue eyes. Tim watched the two of them and grimaced.

"Ehh…I'm gonna go find Alfred. Bye." Tim said quickly, running out the door. _Gross…._

"Do you think we can make it work this time?" Lois asked, showing Bruce a weak smile.

"I'm willing to give it a shot if you are." Bruce said.

"Ok then, with one condition."

"I'm listening," Bruce answered, a little nervous of where she was going.

"This only applies to the…alter ego…but can you try NOT to sneak out the balcony to do your…well… whatever _he_ does while I'm talking to you with my back turned?"

"I thought you might say that." He smiled. "I'll try to resist. You know what the saying is for bad habits. They're hard to break."

"Yeah, I've heard that before." She rolled her eyes, smirking. Bruce walked over to the table and picked up the box and gave it to her. "This is for you."

Lois took the box and slowly opened it. Moving aside some tissue paper, she gasped when she saw a bouquet of flowers. She looked up at Bruce and smiled again. "You're up to old tricks again, aren't you?"

"Felt like spending the holidays with some I care about," He said. "That's not a problem with you, is it??"

"Of course it's not, Bruce. Just curious, though," Lois began, placing the bouquet in a vase. "Are you going to be roaming the Metropolis nights in Superman's place?"

"I wasn't planning on it, actually. Like I said, this is a social call."

"I'm starting to like this." Lois said quietly to herself. "Well, since you're here for some excitement, you can escort me to the Planet's holiday dinner Friday night. I seem to be dateless this year."

"Did you have one last year?"

"Clark," Lois said. "We've always gone together as friends. He disappeared the same day Superman went into the hospital. I hope nothing's happened to him."

Bruce stared long and hard at Lois. "I…I'm sure he's alright… Is Superman still out?" He asked, slightly changing the subject.

"Yeah. His condition's stabilized, but he's still unconscious. During the last few days, I've been going after work to see if he's woken up, but you arranged a ride home for me instead. Do you want to go with me?"

"Sure. It'll get your mind off this stalker thing." He said, putting on a pair of sunglasses.

"Is that supposed to be a disguise or something?" Lois chuckled.

"I'm trying to keep a low profile." Bruce said. "The less news I stir, the better."

"If you say so," Lois said, opening the door. "Don't count on that to last for a while."

When Bruce and Lois walked into the parking lot, a familiar black car drove up to them. When the car stopped, the driver stepped out and greeted the pair.

"Right on time, Alfred," Bruce said, "As usual."

"I guess that's how you found out about this morning." Lois said, climbing into the backseat of the car. From the front passenger seat, Tim turned around to the two.

"Hehe, good to see you're still not all gag-eyed on each other." Tim laughed.

"Ha-ha, very funny, Tim." Lois rolled her eyes.

"If you're not careful, you'll end up on a one way trip back to Gotham." Bruce said crossly. "After all, I do recall telling you back at the office that I was to come ALONE."

"Alright, alright," Tim said, turning back around in his seat as Alfred entered the car. "I'll stop with the goofy love jokes….for now." He smiled to himself.

"Where to, Master Bruce?"

"Metropolis Medical Center," Bruce answered. "We're visiting a friend." As the black car left the lot, a shadow moved from behind one of the pillars and watched the car drive off.

"I hope Superman snaps out of this coma soon. The entire city is in danger without him." Lois said quietly.

"How did you ever survive without Superman in the first place?" Bruce asked her.

"I've been thinking about that too." Lois said. "I realized, although it sounds a little mean, that Superman himself created a lot of super villains. Take Metallo for example. If Superman never stopped him from stealing Lex's battle suit, Corbin would never have gone to prison, never would have gotten sick, and there would never have a Metallo running around Metropolis. At least, that's what I think. I don't think there really were these ultra powerful villains before Superman."  
Bruce was about to reply when his cell phone rang.

"Bruce Wayne here."

"Bruce, its Barbara."

"Anything wrong?"

"The alarm at Arkham went this morning."

"Great." Bruce sighed. "Who was it this time? The Riddler? Poison Ivy?" Lois turned to Bruce and gave him a questionable look.

"Worse. It's Harley Quinn." Barbara said. "You might want to cut this vacation of yours short and return to Gotham soon. Dick and I have been out all day and there's no trace of her so far. We checked with Poison Ivy while at Arkham and she has no idea what Harley's up to this time."

Bruce glanced at Lois briefly. "Barb, I don't think I'll be able to come back very soon."

"Oh." Barbara said on the other side.

"However…" Bruce said, smirking at the back of Tim's head, "I think I know someone who can."

"Really?"

As soon as Tim figured out what Bruce was up to, he whirled around and started shaking his head and begging Bruce silently not to tell her he has to go back.

"Oh, never mind Barb." Bruce said. "Do the best you can. I'm staring at the wimpiest sight I've ever seen."

"Tim's begging isn't he?" Barbara guessed.

"Yep."

"Alright. I'll tell Dick that we're on our own for now. Talk to you soon. Bye."

Bruce closed his cell.

"Who's Barb?" Lois asked, curiously.

"Barbara Gordon, shes the police comisoner's daughter." Bruce said, not really sure if he should give away Batgirl's identity. "Apparently, there's been some trouble in Gotham."

"Since when is Gotham NOT in trouble?" Tim laughed. Bruce gave him an icy stare, making the boy quiet.

"I hope it isn't serious." Lois said.

"Well, seems Harley Quinn broke out of Arkham." Bruce began.

"No kidding?!" Tim asked. "Did she strikes somewhere with Ivy or something?"

"Dick and Barb haven't noticed anything. She's probably lying low for now."

"IS that why you were mentioning me to her?" Tim demanded. "Sneaky, Bruce…real sneaky."

"Well, since you're too lazy to go back to Gotham to find Harley, you're gonna look for her here in Metropolis instead." Bruce said, smirking.

"Say what??

* * *

Bruce, Lois and Tim walked the halls of the Metropolis medical center.

"This is Superman's room." Lois said as she opened the door. On the hospital bed laid the man of steel.

"Woah." Tim said as he ran up to Superman. "A robot did this?"

"Yeah," Lois said "except Metallo isn't an ordinary robot run on batteries or electricity. He has the human brain of a mercenary and is powered by kryptonite. Superman didn't stand a chance this time against him."

"Well, what happened to this Metallo dude when he finished with Sups'?" Tim asked.

"He got away: running around disguised, waiting for the right time for his next rampage."

* * *

_**Well, I finally finished this sucker. I hope it wasn't a disappointment. Please review!!**_


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry for such the long wait on this story. College is in full swing again. Sophomore year, YIPPEE!**

**Disclaimer: I own NOTHING of Batman/Superman Adventures. They belong to Bruce Timm, WB, and all the other creators.**

Chapter 6

Lois Lane walked out of the Daily Planet Break room holding a warm cup of coffee. She smiled to herself, thinking about Bruce and how he 'randomly' came back into her life two days before. But when she reached her desk, her smile faded upon seeing Clark's empty desk. _Clark, where in the blazes are you? _She whirled her chair around to sit and almost dropped her coffee in surprise.

"Tim?" Lois said, placing her cup on her desk. "What are you doing here?"

"Bruce. He told me he had some business to do so he's having me stay here with you for the day."

"What business does he have? Is he working on a project with Luthor?"

"'Dunno." Tim shrugged. "You know Bruce: always has to be a secret."

"Yeah, you don't have to tell me twice," Lois scoffed. "Well, kiddo, since you're going to be here for a while, pull up Clark's chair and relax."

As Tim walked through the room, Perry White rushed over.

"Lois, what do you think this place is? Day Care??" Perry demanded.

"No, chief, of course not. He's…a …friend of mine's...son and I'm just watching him until his father gets back." Lois said.

"Well, you better get all of your assignments done, including the extras that were supposed to be Kent's." Perry White mumbled and walked off. "AND STOP CALLING ME CHIEF!"

"Ok, kid. Since Bruce isn't here, let's have a little talk."

"Uhuh, ok." Tim said nervously. "'Bout what?"

"Let's pick on Bruce, since he isn't here." Lois smiled. "How'd you guys meet?"

"You're not writing a story on this, are you?" Tim asked, raising an eyebrow.

"As if... I already have Smallville's extra load to work on. You really think I want to write another one?"

"Fair enough." Tim smiled. "Batman saved me from Two-Face when the bum was looking for my old man. I was living alone so Bats took me in. I wandered out of the cave and discovered his identity. Batman and I stopped ol' Puke-face and Bruce took me in as his ward. That's it, really. My life isn't that interesting. "

"Uhuh, sure." Lois said, unconvinced. "You have one of the weirdest night jobs and you think your life isn't interesting?"

"OK, fine." Tim sighed.

"So what's Bruce been up to?"

"Same old: work, patrol, work, patrol, the cycle continues."

"Doesn't he have a life?"

"Two, actually."

"No, kiddo, I mean a social life. He doesn't have any friends?" She asked. "…_without_ capes?"

"There's Veronica; she's a big socialite. Bruce is always invited to her parties every holiday season."

"Veronica, huh? Any other ladies in his life?"

"Not that I know of…" Tim said, fidgeting in Clark's chair. _Bruce, hurry up!_

* * *

Harley pulled her long blonde hair into a bun as she walked into the small kitchen of their hideout. Passing Corbin reading the newspaper, she made her way to the stove and lit the flame.

"What are you doing?" Corbin asked, putting the paper on the table.

"It's me and Mista J's eighth anniversary together so I'm, fixing him something nice." Harley piped.

"How'd someone like you get mixed in with a clown like him?" Corbin asked.

"One word Robo-boy: love." Harley smiled as she started mixing eggs.

"Love?" Corbin asked. "You love him?"

"'Course I do, and Puddin' loves me. We have…a special bond." Harley smiled. "Even while we're separated in the darkest of cells in Arkham, we can still feel the sparks between our padded walls." She sighed.

"I'll believe THAT when I see it." Corbin rolled his eyes.

"Its true. No one comes between this gal and her loving sweetheart." Harley said, flipping her omelet. "Not you, not the police, and especially not Batman. You want to know a secret? Puddin told me last night before we went to sleep how he said we should start a family."

"A family?" Corbin asked, growing less interest in the new conversation.

"Yup. Mista J didn't give all the details, but he said as soon as we get back to Gotham, he's going to put his plans into motion." (1) Harley said. "After all, this should be our last confrontation with Batman, so we won't have to worry about him spoiling our fun."

"Keep dreaming, kid." Corbin said, getting up as Joker walked into the room wearing a dark purple robe over his purple pajamas.

"Good morning, Johnny Boy." Joker smiled. "Sleep well? I know I did, hehe"

"I don't sleep, Joker."

"Too bad," Joker said as he sniffed the air. "What's that smell?"

"PUDDIN'!!!!" Harley jumped. "You're up! Happy Anniversary, Mista J!," She ran up and hugged Joker tightly.

"Thanks Harley-girl. Glad to see you didn't make yourself into a pie again." He shuddered at the memory.

"So what's the game plan for today, Puddin'?"

"Well, Poo, we have to wait for the goon loons to return from their night patrol…unless they've been arrested. So hard to find good help these days."

Just then, the back door opened and Corbin's two goons walked in holding a big bag.

"Its about time." Corbin frowned. "Where have you been?"

"We had to make a trip to Gotham, boss."

"Why?" Joker asked. The man held up the bag.  
"Oh, thanks for picking up my dry cleaning, boys." Joker laughed as he took the bag from the goons. Opening it, he pulled out a clean purple suit. "Ah, it feels good to see you again." He smiled and went into the back room.

Harley watched him go. "Ah, isn't he dreamy?" she asked as if in a trance.

"Spare me…" Corbin groaned.

* * *

HOURS LATER

Lois lane walked out of the staff break room with another steaming coffee and proceeded to her desk. While on her way, she looked around for Tim Drake. _Great… Where'd he get to now?_ She then found Tim sitting in her chair playing games on the computer.

"OK, kiddo. What're you doing?" She asked, sitting her coffee on the desk.

"Playing a game." He replied. "There's nothing to do here."

"Like the chief said, this isn't day care. Go play games on Clark's computer." She said.

"I tried. His computer is locked."

"Figures. Well, hopefully Bruce'll be back soon to relieve your boredom." She sat down and continued typing one of her stories. "So, what was that vegetable comment about?"

"Eh, you don't want to know." Tim said.

"Sure I do," Lois countered, turning to the youth. "Spill the beans."

"But I don't think Bruce wants you to know…" Tim stammered.

"Bruce isn't here, Tim. Besides, I know how to keep a secret." She smiled at him. "There's no one around. Spill."

"Alright, alright." Tim sighed. "It was about a year ago. Veronica invited me and Bruce to her wedding to this guy called Michael. It was like the smallest courtship ever. Anyway, Bruce met this woman named Susan and fell in love. Like, 2 weeks later, he got married too! But then Veronica calls Bruce and says Michael is acting like a fruit loop, so me and Batgirl investigate."

"There's a batgirl too? How many of you are there??" Lois asked.

"Uh, 4." Tim said. "Anyway, me and Batgirl go to investigate and we find Michael but he's really a plant person created by Poison Ivy. She created all these walking plant/ veggie people to marry a bunch of rich people and steal their fortunes. The plant people were destroyed and Ivy went back to Arkham."

"So you thought I was a vegetable?"

"Hey, these days, you never know." Tim shrugged.

* * *

Bruce Wayne, again "disguised" in his long trench coat and sunglasses, proceeded into the offices of LexCorp and walked up to the front desk.

Mercy Graves, who had been reading the Daily Planet Newspaper, looked up when Bruce reached the desk. "Can I help you?" she asked in a bored tone.

"I need to talk to Luthor." Bruce said.

"Mr. Luthor is busy and doesn't want to be disturbed." She said, turning back to her paper.

Taking off his glasses, he leaned inward and gave Mercy an icy stare. "Well, you tell Luthor to make some time and fast. I don't have all day."

Mercy shot the CEO a look before pressing her intercom. "Lex?"

"What is it now? I'm busy!"

"Someone's here to see you." She said. "… says its important."

"Tell him he'll have to make an appointment." Luthor said, hanging up.

"That's your cue-"Mercy said to Bruce, although Bruce was gone. Looking around, she saw Wayne about to enter Luthor's office. "HEY! You can't go in!"

"Just try and stop me." Bruce said, throwing the door open and storming inside with Mercy on his heels.

Lex Luthor looked up from his work. "What the?!" He saw Bruce Wayne's angry face and calmed down slightly.

"Lex, I'm sorry for the interruption. I told him he wasn't allowed entry."

"It's alright, Mercy. You may leave."

Mercy shut the office door, leaving the two men.

"Bruce, how nice to see you," Luthor smiled, walking to his former business partner. "What brings you back all the way to Metropolis?"

"You did, after harassing my secretary one too many times." Bruce answered.

"Well, you know Bruce, it's nearly impossible to get in contact with you. You're secretary says you're busy at night, and busy during the day!"

"Unlike some, my work isn't centered on trying to destroy one man. I have a life."

Lex Luthor disregarded the comment. "Regardless, it's good to see you."

"Let's get down to business, Luthor. I know you didn't pester my office for a simple social call."

"Alright, Bruce. I'll get to the point." Lex said. "I was hoping we could regain the great partnership that we had."

Bruce raised a brow. "You put that partnership once you breached the contract."

"Surely you understand my reasons. The government wanted models!"

"Fine. But teaming up with the Joker?! Were you mad?!"

"Bruce, you and I both know there was no proof-"

"There was and you know it. I'm not stupid, Lex. Between your destroyed labs to that giant robot attacking Metropolis, I'd say Joker's rampage lead right to you."

"He forced me into it! I swear it!"

"I don't care who started it. What I do know is, I don't see us partnering up again in the near future." Bruce said as he turned to leave. As he approached the door, he stopped and paused, staring at the floor. Then, he turned back to Luthor. "By the way, you might want to get rid of this purple stain on your floor. Its months old." With that he turned to leave.

Luthor ran to the spot on the floor. Sure enough, there was a shape of a footprint outlined in faded purple on the carpet. Of course that footprint wasn't months old as Bruce described. It was fresh from the Joker's return.

* * *

**Please Review! **

**(1) That bit is a reference to the flashback sequence in ****Batman Beyond: Return of the Joker ****film. **


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